Twelve Disciples

NOTABLES AMONG THE TWELVE

We know the names of the twelve men Jesus chose to be His disciples, but we know very little about most of them. We know most about Peter, clearly one of the greatest men of the New Testament. While James the brother of John is mentioned frequently, it is invariably in association with his brother John. And even though there are traditions that tell of the ministries of the disciples after Jesus’ resurrection, these traditions are uncertain at best. We know that Judas, the traitor, committed suicide after he betrayed Jesus. We know that the apostle James was executed by Herod (Acts 12:1, 2) a few years after Jesus’ resurrection. We know that John lived well into his nineties, ministered in Asia Minor, and wrote five of our New Testament books. We know that Peter traveled and ministered for many years until his execution in Rome in the mid- to late-60s. A relatively strong tradition tells us that Thomas traveled to India and established a church there that has continued into the twenty-first century. Other than that, most of Jesus’ Twelve remain shadowy figures, both in the Gospels and in church history. We can, however, learn much from the several notables among the disciples.

JOHN

Scripture references:
The Gospels; 1, 2, 3 John;
Revelation

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JOHN’S LIFE AND TIMES

John with his brother James and their father Zebedee was a partner in Peter’s fishing cooperative. Like Peter he lived in Capernaum, the capital of the district of Galilee.

John’s familiarity with key people in Jerusalem has led many scholars to presume that John not only fished, but also handled the marketing of fish in the Judean capital. In New Testament times, fish from Galilee were dried or salted and transported to many cities. The fish were a primary source of protein in a land where meat was eaten only on special occasions.

John was with the others who came to listen to John the Baptist and who met Jesus by the Jordan River. When the group of fishermen headed back to Capernaum, Jesus, who lived in nearby Nazareth, traveled with them. John witnessed Jesus’ miracle of changing water into wine, and afterward Jesus stayed with the group for a time. Later, when John and the other fishermen disciples had come to know Him well, Jesus called John and his brother James to become His disciples.

For the next three years, John, like the others, traveled with Jesus and learned from Him. After Jesus’ resurrection, tradition tells us that John settled in Ephesus in Asia Minor, and ministered to the churches of the region. Sometime during the reign of the Emperor Domitian (a.d. 81–96), John was exiled to the small island of Patmos where he received the vision recorded in the Book of Revelation.

EXPLORING JOHN’S RELATIONSHIPS

John’s relationship with Jesus.John—along with Peter and James—was a member of Jesus’ inner circle of three disciples. Christ often took these three with Him while the other nine stayed behind (Mark 5:37; 9:2; Luke 8:51). Most scholars agree that John’s reference to a disciple “whom Jesus loved” in John 13:23 is biographical. Of the twelve, the deepest bond of affection seemed to exist between Christ and John, who made it a point to stay close to Him.

Yet, as we trace specific references to John through the Gospels, we’re struck with the fact that John himself does not appear particularly lovable. Three incidents reported in the Gospels illustrate.

John was protective of his privileges (Mark 9:38–41). One day John remarked to Jesus, “Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us.” Jesus gently rebuked John, “Do not forbid him.”

John might have had a valid reason to raise this issue, for Jewish exorcists often used names in formulas supposed to control supernatural powers, a practice forbidden in God’s Law. But John had quite a different reason. “We forbade him because he does not follow us!” John was a member of a select group, and he was not about to see the uniqueness of his position eroded by others using Jesus’ name who were not followers of His party.

Party spirit has often distorted Christianity as individuals have claimed a corner on God’s truth for their group. John’s complaint, “he does not follow us,” is far from the spirit of Jesus.

John was easily angered (Luke 9:51–56). On another occasion Jesus led His friends along the short route between Galilee and Judea. This route lay through Samaria, and most pious Jews would take the longer route, crossing the Jordan River to avoid Samaritan lands. A long history of hostility existed between the two races, and because Jesus’ party was traveling toward Jerusalem, they were refused hospitality at a Samaritan village. This so infuriated John that he and James asked, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”

The question was in reality a disguised suggestion, for James and John knew they had no authority to command fire. But they were sure Jesus did. In effect, the two disciples let Jesus know they thought He should not stand for this kind of treatment from Samaritans. Those Samaritans deserved to be burned alive!

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Every famous picture of the Last Supper shows the apostle John leaning close to Jesus.

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This incident earned James and John the nickname, Boanerges, “Sons of Thunder” (Mark 3:17). It also earned them Jesus’ rebuke: “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.”

John was motivated by selfish ambition (Mark 10:35–39). After spending nearly two years with Jesus, James and John approached Jesus with a request. (Matthew tells us that they first sent their mother to speak for them!) The request was, “Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory.” The two disciples were sure Jesus the Messiah would soon rule not only the Jewish homeland but also the world. In the imagery of the Middle East, those sitting to a ruler’s right and left were the most powerful individuals in his kingdom!

The two didn’t want much! They simply yearned for power and glory. If that meant they had to step on their companions to gain this end, so be it.

Naturally the other disciples were upset and angry when they heard what James and John had done (Mark 10:41). But the incident gave Jesus an opportunity to share a vital leadership principle. In Christ’s kingdom, “whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever of you desires to be first shall be the slave of all” (Mark 10:43, 44). Once again John and his brother James had displayed a spirit totally out of harmony with the spirit of Christ.

John’s later relationship with believers. John’s attitudes displayed in the synoptic Gospels provide a striking background for one feature of John’s own Gospel and his three letters. In these writings the apostle again and again emphasizes love.

John is the one who wrote, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). John also urged Christians to love one another, saying: “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death” (1 John 3:14).

John, the protective, the angry, the selfish, became the apostle of love who not only taught love but also lived it for some sixty years after Christ’s resurrection!

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JOHN’S GOSPEL

The Gospel of John was the last written of the four accounts of Christ’s life. It is unique in that unlike the others it does not take a chronological approach. It is also unique in that it begins the story of Jesus before creation, when Christ existed as and with God as the Second Person of the Trinity.

John organized his material around seven miracles performed by Jesus, each of which was associated with an extended dialog reporting Jesus’ teaching and actions. An especially important feature of John’s Gospel is John’s report of Jesus’ teaching during the Last Supper (John 13–16) and his report of Christ’s final prayer for His followers (John 17). The Last Supper discourse has been called the “seedbed” of the New Testament, for most of the major doctrines developed in the New Testament epistles can be found there.

John likely wrote his Gospel in the 80s with the intent of making it utterly clear that Jesus truly is God the Son. John also clearly intended to make plain the basic issues in life that every person must resolve. In this book, he clearly compared and contrasted life/death, light/darkness, belief/unbelief, truth/falsehood, and love/hate.

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JOHN: AN EXAMPLE FOR TODAY

John reminds us of the transforming power of a personal relationship with Jesus. During John’s years as a disciple he frequently displayed his all-too-human flaws. Yet, Christ loved John for who he was and for the person he was to become. Truly, John was transformed, for in place of an ambitious and defensive young man, a caring, selfless individual emerged. How much we have to learn, not simply from John, but from what a personal relationship with Jesus did for him.

•     John’s transformation reminds us that Christians are to be a “before and after” people. Our relationship with Christ is to make a difference not simply in our beliefs but in our attitudes and our character as well.

•     John’s transformation encourages us to set aside our own selfish ambition and realize that Christ calls us to serve rather than be served.

•     John’s transformation shows us that God is willing to invest time and effort in us. We do not come to Christ fully equipped with Christ-like attitudes and values. We are often riddled with sinful thoughts and desires. But the God who made John into a truly godly man is also at work in us, and He will work His wonders in us as He did in John.

MATTHEW

Scripture references:
Matthew 9:9; 10:3; Mark 2:14;
Luke 5:27–29

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MATTHEW’S LIFE AND TIMES

We know little about Matthew other than that before he was invited to become a disciple, Matthew collected taxes. In New Testament times, tax collectors were among the outcasts of society. They worked with an oppressive government and often extorted more than was due to line their own pockets. Matthew, who is also called Levi, was among this outcast group.

Because respectable members of society, and especially the religious, did not associate with tax collectors, Matthew had an unusual circle of friends. The New Testament tells us that after Matthew left his office to follow Jesus, Christ ate at his home and was joined there by many “tax collectors and sinners” (Matt. 9:9–10). That Jesus would share a meal with such folk scandalized the Pharisees, who were careful never to risk pollution by associating with any “unclean” person or thing.

Matthew reported the Pharisees’ criticism, and He also reported Jesus’ reply. “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick” (Matt. 9:12; cf. the accounts in Mark 2:13–17; Luke 5:27–29).

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MATTHEW’S GOSPEL

Matthew’s Gospel is the most Jewish of the four portraits of Jesus found in our New Testament. Matthew frequently quotes or alludes to the Old Testament to demonstrate that Jesus fulfilled prophecies about the Messiah.

Matthew carefully deals with questions that would concern any Jew who was told that Jesus Christ is the Messiah: If Jesus is the Messiah, why didn’t He set up the kingdom promised in the Old Testament? If Jesus is the Messiah, what happened to the promised kingdom?

Matthew’s answers are, first, that Jesus did not set up the promised kingdom because God’s people rejected and killed their Messiah (Matt. 16). This too should have been understood from the Old Testament prophets. Isaiah and others indicated that the Messiah would suffer and die for sin (Isa. 53). Second, Matthew indicates that God will yet set up the kingdom envisioned by the prophets, but not until Jesus returns (Matt. 24; 25). The Suffering Servant and the triumphant Ruler envisioned by the prophets are one and the same Person. What the Old Testament prophets did not know was simply that the Messiah’s death and His rule would be separated by an unspecified period of time.

In harmonizing these divergent themes found in the Old Testament, Matthew helped Jews steeped in the Old Testament see Jesus in a new light. They could accept Him in His first-coming mission as Savior without stumbling over His failure to set up an earthly kingdom.

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Even the poorest farmer bringing produce to market was taxed by men like Matthew.

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MATTHEW: AN EXAMPLE FOR TODAY

Each of the synoptic Gospels tells the story of Matthew’s call, the feast Matthew gave afterward to introduce Jesus to his “sinner” friends, and the reaction of the Pharisees. Clearly, important lessons are imbedded in a story that is repeated three times in the New Testament.

•     Matthew is referred to as “Matthew, the tax collector” even when listed with the other disciples (Matt. 10:3). He reminds us that even the outcasts of society have a place in Christ’s kingdom and may well have a significant place!

•     Matthew’s eagerness to expose his friends to Jesus challenges us to resist an enclave mentality. When our only friends are fellow-Christians, it is difficult to see how we can penetrate society with the gospel.

•     Jesus’ choice of Matthew reminds us never to assume that any person, whatever his history, is not a candidate for salvation. Jesus was comfortable in the company of sinners because He truly cared for them. When we show Jesus’ love, even sinners will be comfortable with us.

THOMAS

Scripture references:
John 11:16; 14:5; 20:24–29

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THOMAS’S LIFE AND TIMES

Thomas’s name appears on the several lists of disciples found in the Gospels, often with the added phrase, “the twin.” However, only John’s Gospel reports incidents in which Thomas is an actor.

Thomas’s loyalty(John 11:16). Jesus had left Jerusalem because the growing hostility of the religious leaders placed him in deadly peril. While Jesus was away, a close friend, Lazarus, became seriously ill. His sisters, Mary and Martha, immediately sent for Jesus. When Jesus received the message He waited several days. Then Jesus announced He was returning to Bethany, which lay just outside of Jerusalem. The disciples were reluctant to return, for the danger to Christ was real. Thomas “said to his fellow disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with Him.’ ”

Jesus had become so significant to Thomas that he was unwilling to live if Christ were killed.

Thomas’s uncertainty(John 14:5). The second incident featuring Thomas took place during the Last Supper. Jesus was explaining why it was to His disciple’s benefit for Him to leave, and said, “Where I go you know, and the way you know” (John 14:4). This saying puzzled all of the disciples, but Thomas spoke up and said, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” Christ’s response is one of the most significant of His sayings recorded in the New Testament: “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Thomas and the others did know, for the key to understanding heaven is not that it is a location, but a relationship. Christ was going to be with the Father, and knowing Christ is our passport to where He is.

Thomas’s expression of doubt (John 20:24–29). The first time after His resurrection that Jesus showed Himself to His disciples, Thomas was absent. When the others told Thomas that they had been with Christ, Thomas announced: “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails … I will not believe.”

Remembering Thomas’s readiness to die with Jesus rather than be without Him, we can perhaps understand. Thomas’s life had been turned upside down by Jesus’ death. Hope that Jesus was alive was simply too painful to entertain. Hope might be dashed, and the disappointment would be too great to bear.

Eight days later, Jesus came to His disciples again. This time, Thomas was present! When Jesus invited Thomas to explore the wounds in His hand and side, Thomas simply fell to the floor and said, “My Lord and my God!”

There is an unhealthy skepticism that refuses to believe, and there is an eager skepticism that wants desperately to believe but is afraid to hope. It was this skepticism that possessed Thomas. At the first sight of his Lord, the skepticism disappeared.

THOMAS: AN EXAMPLE FOR TODAY

Thomas, although briefly portrayed in the New Testament, comes across as a person with qualities we would do well to emulate.

•     Thomas exemplifies both love and loyalty. He was willing to go with Christ to Jerusalem because he could not face the prospect of life without Him. Christ needs this kind of follower today, too.

•     Thomas exemplifies an inquiring spirit. When puzzled by Christ’s reference to “the way,” Thomas spoke up with his question. Today truly honest Christians question matters of faith, not because they doubt, but because they yearn to know what God’s Word means.

•     Thomas exemplifies the right kind of skepticism. Thomas wanted what the disciples reported to be true, but at the same time he was afraid of further disappointment. As soon as Thomas saw Jesus, his doubts dissolved and he acknowledged Christ as Lord and God. When we have doubts, we need to remain open to belief so that when Christ’s Spirit speaks to us we will be as ready as Thomas to respond with faith.

JUDAS

Scripture references:
Matthew 10:4; 26; 27; Mark 14;
Luke 22; John 13; 18

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JUDAS’S LIFE AND TIMES

Our knowledge of Judas is limited to the account in each of the Gospels of his terrible act of betrayal and references to his attachment to money. When a woman once poured expensive ointment on Jesus, Judas objected. John reported that Judas complained, “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” And then John added, “Not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it” (John 12:1–6).

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Only after Jesus was condemned did Judas show any remorse. He threw the money the high priests paid him on the floor.

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It was entirely in character for Judas later to approach the high priests and conspire to deliver Christ to them for money.

Each of the Gospels relates what happened, although John adds poignant detail. While the disciples shared their last meal with Jesus, Christ predicted one of them would betray Him. Each of the disciples voiced the question, “Is it I?” Yet when Jesus offered Judas a choice morsel from their serving dish, and told him to do what he intended to do quickly, the others did not realize the significance of Christ’s act.

Jesus showed that He knew what Judas planned. Yet, in the offering of a choice morsel, a sign in that culture of special favor, Jesus was giving Judas a last opportunity to repent. If only Judas would repent he was not yet lost. But Judas would not change his mind and lose the thirty pieces of silver for which he had bargained, for Satan now had a firm grip on Judas’s heart and mind.

Later that night, Judas led a mob that included temple guards and soldiers to Gethsemane, a favorite spot of Jesus’, and Christ was taken away.

Matthew added a vital piece of information. After Christ was sentenced to death, Judas, “seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying ‘I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.’ ” The chief priests scornfully sent Judas away. Judas left, and hanged himself (Matt. 27:1–50). In the act of hanging, the rope broke and Judas’s body fell, tearing open his belly (Acts 1:18).

JUDAS: AN EXAMPLE FOR TODAY

Judas’s story, terrible as it is, contains lessons for us.

•     Judas illustrates that mere association does not make anyone a believer or a godly person. For all those who have gone to church all their lives, the fact that Judas was an intimate of Jesus Himself carries a definite warning. Not association with—but commitment to—Jesus Christ makes the difference.

•     Judas reminds us of Paul’s warning that a love of money is a root of all kinds of evil (1 Tim. 6:10). Judas’s love of money effectively blinded him to the significance of Jesus’ words and acts. Those whose consuming interest is money will be blind to what really counts in life.

•     Judas warns us not to miss God-given opportunities to change our life’s direction. If we persist in doing evil, a time will come when we will be too hardened to repent. When Judas finally realized the enormity of what he had done, it was too late.

•     Judas teaches us not to rationalize wrong decisions. Judas’s reaction after Christ was condemned suggests that he thought Christ would be able to overcome His enemies. What harm could there be in making a profit while giving Jesus the opportunity to show up the religious establishment once again? When Judas realized that Christ was to be executed, he was so filled with remorse he could no longer stand to live. Yet whatever its outcome, Judas’s choice was history’s most terrible betrayal. Let’s never try to justify sinful choices by assuming that what we do won’t make any difference anyway.

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